EcoWaste Coalition is a public interest network of community, church, school, environmental and health groups pursuing sustainable solutions
to waste, climate change and chemical issues facing the Philippines and the world.

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31 January 2019

A waste and pollution watch group has reminded the public
not to mix e-waste with regular waste to keep their toxic content from entering
and polluting the environment and damaging human health.

The EcoWaste Coalition took the opportunity to inform the
public about safe e-waste management following the release of a new report
indicating that only 20 percent of the 50 million tonnes of e-waste produced
globally is formally recycled.

According to the report “A New Circular Vision for
Electronics: Time for a Global Reboot," “less than 20 percent of e-waste
is formally recycled, with 80 percent either ending up in landfill or being
informally recycled – much of it by hand in developing countries, exposing
workers to hazardous and carcinogenic substances such as mercury, lead and
cadmium.”

Published by the Platform for Accelerating the Circular
Economy (PACE) and the UN E-Waste Coalition, the report said that “e-waste can
be toxic, is not biodegradable and accumulates in the environment, in the soil,
air, water and living things.”

E-waste is defined as anything with a plug, electric cord
or battery (including electrical and electronic equipment) from toasters to
toothbrushes, smartphones, fridges, laptops and LED televisions that has
reached the end of its life, as well as the components that make up these
end-of-life products.

“When it is not being stored in cellars, drawers and
cabinets, e-waste is often incinerated or dumped in landfills, or makes its way
around the world to be pulled apart by hand or burned by the world’s poorest,
to the detriment of health and the environment,” the report said.

The new report should encourage stakeholders to sit down
anew to review current regulations and practices leading to increased e-waste
prevention and reduction efforts in the Philippines, the group suggested.

“We need a functional system for e-waste collection
nationwide that will keep toxic pollutants from this waste stream from entering
the environment through improper handling, recycling or disposal.Children, women and workers are most
susceptible to the health risks of unsafe e-waste management,” he said.

“Considering the moves by China and, most recently,
Thailand to ban the entry of electronic and plastic wastes from abroad, we feel
the urgency of tightening our country's current regulations that still allow
the importation of so-called recyclable materials and surpluses,” he added.

Strengthened e-waste regulations and improved e-waste
management practices in the country, the EcoWaste Coalition said, will be in
sync with the ongoing safe e-waste management program led by the Department of
Environment and Natural Resources and supported by the United Nations
Industrial Development Organization, a member of the UN E-Waste Coalition.

PACE and the UN E-Waste Coalition called for an overhaul
of the current electronics system, emphasizing the need for a circular economy
in which resources are not extracted, used and discarded, but valued and reused
in ways that minimize environmental impacts and create decent, sustainable
jobs.

Solutions identified by PACE and the UN E-Waste Coalition
include durable product design, buy-back and return systems for used
electronics, ‘urban mining’ to extract metals and minerals from e-waste, and
the ‘dematerialization’ of electronics by replacing outright device ownership
with rental and leasing models in order to maximize product reuse and recycling
opportunities.

"It's time for the electronics industry to clean up
and substitute hazardous chemicals and processes with substances and procedures
that present less, or no risk, to health and the environment," the
EcoWaste Coalition, a proponent of a zero waste and toxics-free future, said.

30 January 2019

The unrelenting production, consumption and disposal of single-use plastics pose a major hindrance in community efforts to attain the zero waste goal, the Cavite Green Coalition and the EcoWaste Coalition jointly pointed out.The groups dared companies making and using single-use plastics to take responsibility for the endless garbage woes afflicting communities, including the town of General Mariano Alvarez (GMA), site of the groups’ zero waste project in partnership with the municipal government.The groups issued the challenge as the nation concludes tomorrow the observance of the annual "Zero Waste Month" as per Presidential Proclamation No. 760, Series of 2014.“Our efforts to educate the grassroots and assist them in drawing up and implementing barangay-level action plans are helpful but not enough to achieve the desired zero waste resource management,” stated Ochie Tolentino, Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition.“A key stumbling block that we always have to deal with is the volume of residual plastic waste, especially plastic bags, sachets and other single-use plastics, piling up at the barangay and municipal materials recovery facilities or MRFs,” she pointed out. “Our experience is telling us that companies should assume responsibility for the plastic waste pollution besetting communities, be accountable, and not simply pass the burden to the local government and the people,” she said. A brand audit carried out by the Cavite Green Coalition and the EcoWaste Coalition in cooperation with GMA Municipal Environment and Natural Resources Officer and residents of Barangay Bernardo Pulido showed that 82 manufacturers are contributing to branded pollution.Out of the approximately 29 kilos of mixed plastic waste collected from 3,405 households in the barangay, a total of 4,099 pieces of identifiable branded waste were collected. Additionally, over 100 pieces of branded trash with indistinguishable brands were also gathered.The groups revealed that among the top branded plastic waste materials were from: 1. Nestle (509); 2. Universal Robina Corporation (394); 3. Unilever (327); 4. PT Torabika Eka Semesta (306); 5. Monde M.Y. San Corp (282); 6. Procter and Gamble Phil. Inc. (235); 7. Liwayway Marketing Corp (196); 8. Mighty and Strong Foods (174); 9. Rebisco Biscuit Corp (114); and 10. Colgate-Palmolive Phil. Inc (99).Together, these 10 manufacturers comprise 65% of the total identifiable branded plastic wastes collected out of 82 manufacturers listed in the brand audit.“To drastically reduce the waste that our homes and communities generate, we need companies to switch from single-use, throw-away packaging to alternative product delivery systems,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition.“We hope companies, especially the top companies contributing to branded pollution, will heed our plea for plastic use and waste reduction, and move away from wasteful disposable product packaging,” she added.- end –

27 January 2019

A
non-profit advocacy group for public health and the environment has denounced
the unlawful sale of unregistered skin whitening products in Quiapo, Manila
that health authorities in the Philippines and neighboring countries have
already banned for containing mercury, a highly toxic substance.

The EcoWaste Coalition criticized retailers for selling such products in
violation of the national and regional ban on cosmetics laden with mercury
exceeding the trace amount limit of one part per million (ppm) under the ASEAN
Cosmetic Directive (ACD).

“The brazen disregard by unscrupulous traders of the ACD and related public
health warnings issued by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the Philippines and
its counterpart agencies in ASEAN countries is putting the health of consumers
at risk of mercury exposure,” said Thony Dizon, Chemical Safety Campaigner,
EcoWaste Coalition.

“We call upon the Manila Health Department to take immediate action to bring
the sale of mercury -laced cosmetics in the city to a complete halt,” he added.

The group’s test purchases last Thursday, January 24, in Quiapo, Manila netted
six imported skin whitening products banned by cosmetics regulators in Brunei,
Indonesia, Myanmar, Philippines, and Singapore for containing mercury, a
substance not allowed as ingredient in cosmetic products as per the ACD.

A component of the Glow Glowing 5 in 1 Beauty Skin made in Malaysia, which
promises a “white, fluffy, smooth (skin) as early as 7 days,” was found
loaded with mercury at 24,100 ppm . Singapore in 2017 banned a 4 in 1
variant of this product for containing mercury above the threshold by
more than 25,000 times. Unlike the other items, this product is pricey at
P1,700 per set.

A Feique Herbal Extract Whitening Anti-Freckle Set banned by the FDA since 2014
had 23,300 ppm of mercury. Manufactured in China, this product, which sells
for P150 per set, was among the seven products submitted in 2014 by the
EcoWaste Coalition to the FDA for confirmatory mercury analysis and was later
banned.

A product from Pakistan
called Goree Day & Night Whitening Cream was found contaminated with 18,800
ppm of mercury. Sold for P350, Goree was banned by the FDA in 2017.
Health authorities in Brunei
and Singapore, as well as
countries in Europe, have likewise banned its
sale.

Banned by the FDA since 2015, Collagen Plus Vit E Day & Night Cream had
8,264 ppm of mercury. This product costing P200 is also banned in Indonesia, its
country of origin.

Temulawak Day & Night Beauty Whitening Cream bought for P250 tested with
7,980 ppm of mercury. This product from Malaysia
is banned in Brunei and Myanmar.

Erna Whitening Cream in tiny jar costing P60 had 1,246 ppm of mercury.
Erna, along with 10 other products, were submitted by the EcoWaste Coalition to
the FDA in 2013 for mercury content analysis, which the agency subsequently
banned.

The Philippine FDA has yet to impose a ban on Glow Glowing and Temulawak
skincare products.

According to health experts, the regular application of mercury-laced skin
creams could lead to skin blotching, discoloration and rash. Chronic
exposure to mercury in cosmetics products, which can be absorbed through the
skin, may also cause toxic effects to the kidneys, digestive and the nervous
system resulting to organ damage.

The report “Mercury in Women of Child-Bearing Age in 25 Countries,” published
by Biodiversity Research Institute and IPEN (a global civil society network for
a toxics-free future that includes the EcoWaste Coalition), warned “the
harmful effects that can be passed from the mother to the fetus when the
mother’s mercury levels exceed 1 ppm include neurological impairment, IQ loss,
and damage to the kidneys and cardiovascular system.”

Mercury in skin whitening creams and other cosmetics is eventually discharged
into wastewater contaminating the marine environment and consequently the food
chain.

22 January 2019

Green groups, EcoWaste Coalition and the National
Coalition to Save the Trees (NCST), today appealed to all individuals and
groups who are running in the midterm elections this coming May to spare the
trees of campaign materials.

The groups jointly aired the appeal after eco-volunteers
found plastic posters nailed or tacked on trees by candidates’ supporters in
the hopes of getting voters’ attention ahead of the official campaign period.

"Trees don't vote.For the sake of life-sustaining trees, we appeal to all candidates and
their backers to voluntarily remove campaign materials on trees," the
groups said.

Environmental and human rights advocate Father Robert
Reyes of the NSCT urged candidates to respect the trees as he likened the
nailing of posters on trees to the torture and crucifixion of Jesus Christ.

“The Roman executioners nailed Jesus to a tree.Don’t candidates repeat the deadly act by
nailing their posters on trees?Yes, but
instead of killing Jesus and us directly, they are slowly killing the
trees.Genuine politics does not hurt or
kill whether persons or trees.Do not
kill trees.Do not kill us,” said Reyes.

Daniel Alejandre, Zero Waste Campaigner of the EcoWaste
Coalition added that “the nailing of posters and banners on trees is blatantly
unlawful and has to stop” as he asked aspiring political leaders to “be the
first ones to uphold the laws protecting trees from human abuse and
disrespect.”

Republic Act 3571, as amended by Presidential Decree 953,
prohibits the “cutting, destroying or injuring of planted or growing trees,
flowering plants and shrubs or plants of scenic value along public roads, in
plazas, parks, school premises or in any other public ground.”

Presidential Decree 953 states that violators “shall be
punished with imprisonment for not less than six months but not more than two
years, or with a fine of not less than P500 but not more than P5,000, or with
both such imprisonment and fine at the discretion of the court.”

“If the offender is a public officer or employee, he
shall, in addition, be dismissed from the public service and disqualified
perpetually to hold public office,” the law said.

According to the NCST and the EcoWaste Coalition, tacking
or nailing campaign materials could stress out trees and make them vulnerable
to decay-causing micro-organisms, bad insects, and diseases causing stunted
growth, shorter lifespan and premature death.

"We have the shared responsibility to protect trees
as they clean the air we breathe, store water and prevent soil erosion and
floods, serve as homes for other living organisms, and provide us with food,
medicine, paper, and other essential needs," the groups said.

20 January 2019

The unchecked use of plastic banderitas in community fiestas is not only adding
to the volume, but also to the toxicity of garbage.

The EcoWaste Coalition, a waste and pollution watch
group, issued this statement after detecting heavy metals, particularly lead,
in samples taken from banderitas strung across the crowded streets and alleys
of Tondo, which is celebrating today the popular feast of Santo Niño.

“Plastic banderitas add to the volume and toxicity of
rubbish generated by our popular but wasteful fiestas,” said Thony Dizon,
Chemical Safety Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.

“These unnecessary accessories may look safe to the naked
eye.However, when these banderitas are
finally disposed of in dumpsites, landfills or incinerators, or thrown in water
bodies, their toxic chemical additives can enter the environmentposing a risk to public health,” he
said.

“Burning these banderitas will cause the formation and
release of even more toxic byproducts such as dioxins,” he added.

Using a portable X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) analytical
instrument, the group detected lead in 12 of 25 samples of plastic banderitas
in the range of 512 to 9,931 parts per million (ppm).

Bright orange-colored banderitas, as well as those
promoting certain products were among those found with high lead content.

The presence of lead in some of the sampled buntings may
be due to the use of lead compounds as plastic stabilizer or as plastic
colorant, the group explained.

According to the World Health Organization, “lead is a
cumulative toxicant that affects multiple body systems, particularly affecting
the development of the brain and nervous system,” while “dioxins can cause
reproductive and developmental problems, damage the immune system, interfere
with hormones and also cause cancer.”

The renewed efforts by the national government to clean
up and rehabilitate Manila Bay should prompt the local authorities, church
leaders, and community residents into stopping wasteful practices that
contribute to the pollution of the bay, including the rampant use of banderitas
and other single-use plastics, the EcoWaste Coalition said.

Corporations should also ensure that their product
packaging, as well as product promotional materials such as banderitas, are
reusable, recyclable or compostable, and are safe from chemicals that are
harmful to humans and the environment, including aquatic life, the group
pointed out.

19 January 2019

The single-use plastic banderitas adorning the streets of
Tondo in celebration of the feast of Santo Niño tomorrow are not in sync with
the government’s plan to clean up Manila and rehabilitate the highly polluted
Manila Bay.

The EcoWaste Coalition, a waste and pollution watch
group, made this observation after visiting last Wednesday and Friday the
immediate vicinity of the Santo Niño de Tondo Church and finding the streets
and alleys excessively decorated with plastic buntings as if there was no
tomorrow.

“We are appalled by the extreme use of plastic bags,
plastic strips, plastic packaging scraps and plastic product advertisements as
fiesta banderitas as if the 1,175 tons of garbage that Manila churns out daily
is not yet enough,” said Daniel Alejandre, Zero Waste Campaigner, EcoWaste
Coalition.

“These banderitas are basura in the making.After the festivities this Sunday, the
banderitas will be taken down and transported by barge, along with other
post-fiesta discards, to the Navotas Sanitary Landfill, the dumping ground for
Manila’s garbage,” he said.

Alejandre pointed out that “reckless wasting as
manifested by the banderitas hanging on every street and alley of Tondo goes
against the moves to clean up Manila and reduce the city's huge waste
production.”

“Some of these banderitas may end up as street litter or blown away to the sea
while being hauled to the loading station at Pier 18 and onto the landfill near
Manila Bay,” he said.

The EcoWaste Coalition urged city, barangay and church
officials to act decisively against the unnecessary hanging and irresponsible
disposal of plastic banderitas that are simply thrown away after the
fiesta.

“We can easily do away with wasteful banderitas as these
are not crucial to the good conduct of any community celebration,” Alejandre
said.

The group also suggested that May 2019 poll candidates
should stop politicizing faith-based activities with hollow "happy
fiesta" banners and other campaign materials.

“These ‘happy fiesta’ tarpaulins only add to the street
clutter, as well as garbage.We urge our
well-meaning political aspirants to be always mindful of the environmental
impact of their campaigning activities,” Alejandre said.

The EcoWaste Coalition emphasized that “the true essence
of our time-honored festive celebrations does not rely on the length and color
of plastic buntings crisscrossing our streets, but on how we relight our faith
and share our community blessings through the fiesta.”

In lieu of wasteful banderitas and banners, the group
suggested that funds for these non-essentials be spent for public information
drive towards waste prevention and reduction, which can improve people’s live
and protect public health and the environment.

16 January 2019

The waste and pollution watch group, EcoWaste Coalition,
has expressed serious concern over the countlesselection propaganda tarpaulins that have
sprouted all over Metro Manila ahead of the official campaign period for the
May 2019 midterm polls.

“Tarpaulins promoting the names of politicians eyeing
elective positions have replaced Christmas decorations that used to adorn our
streets.You can see the ubiquitous
tarps hanging on electric posts, phone and TV cables, and on trees,” said
Daniel Alejandre, Zero Waste Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.

“The ‘battle of the tarpaulins’ is more obvious in
communities that are set to observe the feast of Santo Nino this coming
Sunday.The whole stretch of Jesus
Street in Pandacan, Manila, for example, is dotted with tarpaulins of mostly
local candidates that are competing for voters’ attention and support,” he
said.

“Politicians and their supporters have without doubt
exploited the loopholes in the election law as regards premature campaigning,”
he said.

“The lax regulation has emboldened political wannabes and
their supporters to mass produce tarpaulins and to put them up anywhere even in
restricted and unsafe places,” he added.

The EcoWaste Coalition also underscored the waste and
toxicity issues resulting from the wild use of propaganda tarpaulins.

“Time will come when a tarpaulin has to be removed and
disposed of.Even if reused for other
purposes, it will still be thrown away after it has worn out or is no longer
needed.These tarps, sooner or later,
will get buried or burned somewhere,” said Thony Dizon, Chemical Safety
Campaigner, EcoWaste Coalition.

“Sad to say, tarpaulins are not harmless materials.Mostly made of polyvinyl chloride (PVC)
plastic, tarpaulins may contain toxic chemicals such as cadmium, lead and
phthalates that can leach and contaminate the surroundings,” he explained.

“It’s possible that some of the tarpaulins that we see on
the streets might even end up being burned and this will cause far more
dangerous pollution,” he warned.

Dizon explained that when chlorinated materials such as
PVC plastic are burned, toxic byproducts called dioxins are unintentionally
formed and released to the environment.

Dioxins are among the persistent organic pollutants, or
POPs, that are targeted for global minimization, if not elimination, under the
Stockholm Convention on POPs, an international treaty of which the Philippines
is a state party.

To prevent and reduce tarpaulin-related waste and
pollution, the EcoWaste Coalition urged policy makers to draw up a regulation
that will control tarpaulin production, use and disposal.

In the absence of such a regulation, the group appealed
to all politicians and their backers to moderate their use of tarpaulins, or
better yet opt for ecological campaign methods and materials, and to wait until
the official campaign period for the upcoming polls has begun.

15 January 2019

The waste and pollution watch group, EcoWaste Coalition,
urged the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to look into
banning plastic waste importation in light of the Canadian and Korean garbage
dumping incidents.

“We request DENR Secretary Roy Cimatu to impose tough
measures that will prevent discarded plastics that could no longer enter China
from being diverted into the Philippines due to loopholes in existing
regulations,” said Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator, EcoWaste Coalition.

“With the ban on plastic waste imports in effect in China
since 2018, we are seeing increased waste exports from South Korea to the
Philippines,” she warned.

Lucero cited data from the Korea Customs Service
published in November last year indicating that 2017 waste exports from South
Korea to Philippines rose from 4,398 tons to 11,588 tons after China closed the
door for plastic waste and other waste imports from overseas.Waste exports from South Korea to Indonesia,
Thailand and Taiwan also increased.On
the other hand, South Korea’s waste exports to China dropped from 119,575 tons
in 2017 to 9,379 tons in 2018.

“Waste traders from industrialized countries are
frantically looking for places with lenient regulations where their plastic
waste can be shippedfor so-called
‘recycling’ like what we have seen in the controversial plastic garbage
shipments from Canada and South Korea.We need to take action now, like what Malaysia and Vietnam did, before
it’s too late,” Lucero added.

According to news reports, Vietnam stopped issuing
plastic waste import licenses in July 2017. Their waste imports went from 2,000
– 5,000 tons per month to 300 – 400 tons per month.Malaysia made the same move reducing their
plastic waste imports from 1,000 to 2,000 tons per month in 2017 to 56 tons in
2018.Malaysia last October 2018 also
announced its plan to phase out imports of all plastic wastes in three years.

The EcoWaste Coalition is definitely not the lone voice
calling for preventive action to stop the influx of plastic waste imports into
the Philippines.

At the ceremonial send-off rites last Sunday for the 51
containers of illegal garbage exports from South Korea, Rep. Juliette Uy
(Second District, Misamis Oriental) conveyed her support for “stringent
policies” to deter plastic waste dumping into the country.

“We need to adopt new stringent policies to prevent the
importation of plastic and other types of waste since we do not want our
province and our whole country for that matter to become a global garbage
dump,” she told the crowd assembled at the Mindanao International Container
Terminal (MICT).

MICT Port Collector John Simon also signified the need
for “stringent policy measures” to protect the country from plastic wastes and
pollutants.

“It’s our shared responsibility to proactively prevent
plastic wastes, which often come unsorted and contaminated with hazardous
materials, from entering our ports.Stringent policy measures should be adopted, including banning the
importation of waste plastics, which should be treated at source and not sent
to developing counties like ours,” he said.

Zero waste advocate Noli Abinales, founder of Buklod Tao,
agreed with Simon: "We should send a clear message to waste traders and
traffickers that our country is not a dumping ground for the world's
trash.Disallowing plastic waste
importation will compel governments and industries to think of innovative ways
to prevent the creation of garbage and ensure their environmentally-sound
management at the country of generation."

In July 2017, China’s Ministry of Environmental
Protection (MEP) notified the World Trade Organization (WTO) of its intent to
prohibit the importation of scrap plastics by the end of December 2017 “to
protect China’s environmental interests and people’s health.”

According to the notification sent by the MEP to the WTO,
“large amounts of dirty wastes or even hazardous wastes are mixed in the solid
waste that can be used as raw materials… pollut(ing) the environment
seriously.”

“To protect China’s environmental interests and people’s
health, we urgently adjust the imported solid waste list, and forbid the import
of solid wastes that are highly polluted,” the MEP said.

13 January 2019

Tagoloan, Misamis Oriental/Quezon City. The waste and pollution watch group, EcoWaste Coalition, applauded the departure from the Philippines of 51 containers of illegal garbage exports from South Korea extolling the move as a “triumph for environmental justice, morality and the rule of law.”

Speaking at the ceremonial send-off rites held at the Mindanao International Container Terminal (MICT), Aileen Lucero, National Coordinator of the EcoWaste Coalition, underscored that “the waste shipments violated Korean and Philippine customs and environmental laws, as well as the Basel Convention,” and “sending the garbage back to its origin is only just, moral and lawful.”

“Our resolute stance to get the garbage returned to its sender shows how much we, the Filipino people, want our fragile ecosystems to be protected against the adverse effects of waste trafficking, which is a serious threat to our people’s lives, their health and the environment,” she said.

To emphasize their stance versus waste trafficking, the group held a banner that reads “stop exporting garbage to the Philippines.” They also brandished placards saying “we are not a garbage can for Korean waste,” “Korean waste should be treated in Korea,” and “don’t transfer Korean waste to the Philippines.”

“By saying ‘no’ to garbage dumping from Korea and other countries, we say ‘no’ to the derogation of our country’s dignity and sovereignty, ‘no’ to the disrespect for national and international laws, and ‘no’ to the harm they will bring to our communities,” Lucero told the crowd assembled.

“As a civil society group dedicated to promoting a zero waste and toxics-free Philippines, we promise to remain vigilant to ensure that our country does not become a dumpsite for any country’s garbage,” she assured them.

MICT Port Collector John Simon echoed Lucero’s stance as he said: “May our victory serve as a lesson to big nations that small nations like the Philippines can rise and fight for its right to have a clean environment free from the hazardous waste of the most powerful and industrialized nations of the world.”

Lucero was quick to point out “the struggle for environmental justice, morality and the rule of law is not yet over” as there are still 5,176.91 tons of bulk waste languishing on a government land in Barangay Santa Cruz, Tagoloan waiting to be sent home.

“For the sake of the Tagoloan people’s health and their environment, we call upon the Korean government to continue its fruitful cooperation with the Philippine government to ensure the rapid re-export of these wastes to Pyeongtaek City!,” she said.

Last December 27 and 28, 2018, the governments of the Philippines and South Korea resolved to have the 6,500 tons of illegal garbage re-exported to the latter. Philippine authorities have determined the waste shipments as “misdeclared, heterogenous and injurious to public health.”

Not forgetting about the 103 containers of reeking Canadian residual wastes disguised as plastic scraps for recycling, the EcoWaste Coalition stressed that “the repatriation of the South Korean garbage to its source should rouse Canada into resolving the festering garbage dumping controversy.”

It will be recalled that illegal garbage exports from Canada entered the port of Manila in several batches from 2013 to 2014. In 2015, wastes from 26 of these 103 containers were illegally disposed of at a landfill in Tarlac rubbing salt into the wound.

Canada ’s indecisiveness to take their reeking garbage back violates the rule of law and is immoral, the EcoWaste Coalition said. Despite Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s assurance in 2017 that “it is now theoretically possible to get it back,” the Canadian garbage continues to fester with no end in sight, the group lamented.

The return of the dumped waste to South Korea shows doing the right thing is not just theoretical, the EcoWaste Coalition pointed out, expressing its hope that Canada will finally come into compliance with the Basel Convention.

South Korea’s mixed plastic waste cargoes in 51 containers -- wrongly declared as “plastic synthetic flakes” -- were in violation of DENR DAO 2013-22 as per the investigation report by the Environmental Management Bureau (EMB)– Region 10. The said regulation, which implements the provisions of Republic Act 6969 (Toxic Substances and Hazardous and Nuclear Wastes Control Act), states that “no importation of heterogenous and unsorted plastic materials shall be allowed.”

Also found in the shipments were waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE), popularly known as e-waste, including printers, keyboards, electric fans, cables, cellphone batteries and chargers, dry cell batteries, and LED lamps.

Among the environmental groups present at the send-off rites were the EcoWaste Coalition, Greenpeace, Bantayo Aweg, Davao Pobre Bikers Association Ecoteneo-Ateneo de Davao University, Interface Development Interventions Inc., No Burn Pilipinas-Mindanao and the Youth for Climate Justice.

About Me

is a public interest network of community, church, school, environmental and health groups pursuing sustainable solutions to waste, climate change and chemical issues facing the Philippines and the world.